Barista at The Warbler Hotel 2.0

Progressive HR Strategies•New Orleans, LA

About The Position

The Barista is the craft and tempo of Milly’s Café, delivering exceptional espresso, thoughtful hospitality, and a refined all-day counter experience. The role combines exacting beverage standards with service of pastries, light breakfast and lunch offerings, retail items, full alcohol bar service, and hotel-guest needs. Baristas work efficiently while ensuring guests do not feel rushed or processed. The position includes preparing espresso and other beverages, serving café food and retail products, maintaining displays and equipment, processing payments, monitoring inventory, and supporting café opening and closing routines. Baristas are expected to provide attentive guest service, protect hotel guest privacy, and maintain immaculate personal and station presentation. The role requires early-opening shifts, weekdays, weekends, holidays, variable peak periods, and some closing and inventory shifts.

Requirements

High school diploma or equivalent.
Six months of specialty-coffee, high-volume café, restaurant, or comparable beverage-service experience.
Ability to follow recipes, operate POS systems, handle cash accurately, and work safely with hot equipment.
Availability for early mornings, weekdays, weekends, and holidays, including variable peak periods; some closing and inventory shifts are required.
Knowledge of espresso extraction, grinder adjustment, steaming and texturing milk, beverage sequencing, and machine-cleaning routines.
Knowledge of pour-over variables, including ratio, grind, water temperature, bloom, pour pattern, and brew time.
Basic food-allergen awareness, including cross-contact prevention for milks, pastries, and shared tools.
Ability to stand and walk for up to 8 hours and perform repetitive reaching, tamping, steaming, pouring, and lifting.
Ability to lift and carry up to 35 pounds, including milk crates, coffee deliveries, ice, and dry goods.
Ability to work around hot steam, boiling water, sharp tools, cleaning chemicals, wet floors, and refrigeration.

Nice To Haves

One or more years of specialty-coffee experience with semi-automatic espresso equipment.
SCA coursework or comparable coffee education.
Experience in a luxury hotel, independent roaster café, bakery café, or retail-focused coffee program.
Product merchandising, retail inventory awareness, and confident but non-intrusive suggestive-selling skills.
State or local food-handler certification.
Allergen-awareness training.
Responsible alcohol-service/TIPS certification or state equivalent, if café alcohol service is assigned.

Responsibilities

Dial in espresso at opening and throughout service by adjusting grind, dose, yield, and extraction time based on coffee age, humidity, and taste evaluation.
Prepare espresso beverages, brewed coffee, tea, seasonal drinks, and non-alcoholic offerings according to approved recipes, temperatures, presentation standards, and ticket times.
Produce consistent latte art while prioritizing beverage quality, speed, and order accuracy.
Prepare and present pour-over coffee using designated brewers, recipe cards, and water standards, with guest-appropriate narration.
Explain roasts, producers, processing methods, flavor profiles, milk alternatives, and seasonal coffee selections in accessible language.
Receive, mark, sequence, and hand off café orders accurately; coordinate with pastry and kitchen colleagues on the timing of breakfast and lunch items.
Maintain fresh and attractive pastry and retail displays, following dating, rotation, allergen-labeling, and merchandising procedures.
Recommend retail items such as whole beans, brewing tools, packaged goods, and gifts using product knowledge without pressuring guests.
Keep espresso machines, grinders, brewers, refrigeration, milk stations, counters, and guest-facing areas clean, calibrated, stocked, and service-ready.
Process cash, POS, mobile-payment, comp, and room-charge transactions accurately and follow hotel authorization and guest-verification procedures.
Monitor inventory par levels for coffee, milks, syrups, service supplies, pastry packaging, and retail stock; communicate shortages before they affect service.
Support café opening and closing, including machine backflushing, grinder cleaning, safe food storage, temperature logs, waste reduction, and handoff notes.
Acknowledge waiting guests promptly, provide realistic timing during rushes, and maintain eye contact and an unhurried tone at handoff.
Recognize repeat guests only through respectful, approved practices and reconfirm changes rather than assuming orders.
Present beverages with clean cups and accurate names, briefly describe them when useful, and promptly and graciously remake beverages that do not meet standards.
Maintain immaculate attire, hands, nails, and station presentation.
Protect hotel guest privacy when processing room charges and avoid disclosing room numbers or personal details.